Whitey Durham
Brian Dale "Whitey" Durham was the Ravens' coach during Dan Scott, Keith Scott, Lucas Scott and Nathan Scott's time on the team. He and Dan Scott have never seen eye-to-eye and often bicker over their differing opinions on the team. Whitey often laments the death of his wife, Camilla Durham, and the fact that he didn't spend more time with her while she was alive. As a coach, he was held in high esteem by the team who wanted to ensure that he won a state championship before retiring from coaching. After the Ravens finally win him his much-coveted State Championship title, he started coaching at a college level with Nathan on his team and Lucas as his assistant coach. He eventually retired, leading a quiet life on the outskirts of Tree Hill. Character History It was explained that Coach Durham received the nickname "Whitey" after his all-white high school basketball team played an all-black team for the first time. After the two teams had played each other, they decided to have a mixed match in which one of the black captains said "I'll take 'Whitey'." Season 1 Whitey was the Raven's basketball coach in Tree Hill. Keith Scott takes Whitey to the river court to see Lucas play. Whitey decides to ask Lucas to play on his team, which at first he refuses then he agrees to doing so. It was shown that Whitey coached Keith while he was in high school, until Keith quit because he said Dan always made it a competition. Whitey tells Keith that when Dan approached him and told him that Karen was pregnant, Whitey gave him the advice to go to college, which Keith said was a favor for Lucas and Karen. Whitey and Keith stay close in season 1 because Keith would pour Whitey a drink when he would visit him or take him to the River Court to see the boys play. While Peyton is in the cemetery, Whitey shows up and tells her that his wife, Camilla is planted there as well. Peyton goes to Whitey once after that to talk because she can relate to him since her mother is dead too. Later on, Nathan takes drugs to help break Dan's scoring record, during the middle of the game, Nathan collapses and Whitey cancels practice because he said he wouldn't lose a boy to that and that they lost sight on the game, Whitey puts practice back on when he's in the car with Keith and sees all the boys at the River Court playing basketball. During the middle of the season, Whitey wants to retire but Whitey has a small post-it of his life goals which states he wants to coach for 20 years, win 500 games, and make a difference. Whitey states, "I promised Camilla I'd win 500 games, then walk away." At the end of the episode, Whitey is shown crossing out the 500 and writing 600 indicating he will be around for another season with the boys. During the first play off game, Whitey wasn't there. He was getting surgery on his eye which he had been avoiding, Dan took over Whitey's spot but the boys lost the play off game. Season 2 Whitey is shown at Nathan and Haley's party that Lucas threw. He gives them a blanket Camilla hand stitched for a child but since Whitey and Camilla never had children, Whitey knew Camilla would rather it go to someone like Nathan. Whitey is later shown showing the students a video of a time capsule. It's Whitey in the video talking about Camilla from 50 years ago. Whitey tells the students they are going to be making their own time capsules as well. Later on, Whitey is shown with Jenny, Jake's daughter. Season 3 Before the Ravens emerge to begin their first practice of the new season at Midnight Madness, Whitey endorses his good friend Karen for mayor against Dan. Whitey is later incensed when Lucas and Nathan emerge from the locker room fighting. He tells Dan "Damn your sperm Danny!". He then punishes the team by making them run extra sprints for the Scott brothers' transgressions. After the Ravens lose their first two games of the season, Whitey kicks the team out of the gym, which bears his name, and forces the team to take up residence in a cramped, dirty gym at the old Tree Hill High campus. The team practices and plays their games there until Nathan hits a game-winning shot in a late-season tournament to put the Ravens in the state playoffs. Season 4 The Ravens won the championship game which was Whitey's last game as coach of the Tree Hill Ravens. He retired at the end of the year. Missing Years A year after graduation, Whitey is helping Lucas, his now assistant coach, coach Nathan's college basketball team, The Cobras, to the championship. Whitey was suppose to retire after the Ravens, but took the job of head coach of the Cobras, so he could guide Lucas into becoming a head coach himself. Season 6 Dan goes to visit Whitey's ranch and pleads with Whitey to kill him because of his actions. Whitey refuses and comforts Dan. Season 7-9 Mark Schwahn: "Whitey is happy, He's taking care of his horses; he's on his ranch. He's got his horses, he's got a nice, quiet life." Despite the turbulence of the kids' teenage years, Schwahn says that Whitey wouldn't change a thing. "I think that he thinks, as I do, that it was all worth it, being invested in these characters as kids. I think he believes that the time he took to counsel them paid off. That they're better human beings because of that. That the world is better, because of that." The #1 jersey retired for Whitey following the Raven's state championship during Nathan, Lucas and Skills' senior season still hangs in the Tree Hill gym. It has been joined by retired jerseys for Nathan (#23), Quentin Fields (#44) and Jamie Scott (#12). The #33 jersey retired for Dan Scott was taken down when Dan admitted to murdering Keith. Relationships *''Family'': Brian 'Whitey' Durham/Family Family Camilla Durham (Wife, Deceased) Career Trivia *While on the Tree Hill Ravens, Whitey's number was one. *Whitey is one of the only 4 main characters to not appear in the ninth and final season. The other are Karen, Peyton and Rachel. He is the only male. *In the Season 6 finale he tells Dan that there is still time for redemption. Dan later redeems himself by saving Nathan. Category:The Durham Family Category:High School Faculty Category:Males Category:Basketball Coach Category:Characters